Animals come in all shapes and sizes, and equipment suitable for one species is not necessarily appropriate for another. For surgical work, small animals can be lifted on to an operating table, but large animals, such as horses and cattle, cannot easily be manoeuvred, and they present a big problem. When anaesthetized, they collapse, and although they may be rolled over to a more convenient position, it is never ideal for a vet to operate kneeling down.
There have been proposals for an operating table onto which an inert large animal can be manoeuvred when the table is lowered. It is then raised to a convenient height at which the vet can work. Among these is an inflatable structure such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,567,855.
While that inflatable structure has proved successful, there is still a need for a more compact, rigid but expansible structure, perhaps combined with a shallow inflatable top which can be contoured or adjusted to suit the animal and the attitude at which it is required to lie.
There are also available from Shanks Veterinary Equipment, Inc. of Milledgeville, Ill., various adjustable equine surgery tables with hydraulic operation of a rigid table top. However, these are incapable of being lowered very close to the ground (a minimum of 15 inches is quoted) and their complexity makes them expensive and difficult to keep hygienic.
It is the aim of this invention to provide an operating table which is safe, simple and easy to adjust and to keep clean, which can lower virtually to floor level, and which is readily adaptable to many different animals in various different postures.